Description
Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) is an active remote sensing system
that can be operated in either a profiling or scanning mode using
pulses of light to illuminate the terrain. LIDAR data collection
involves mounting an airborne laser scanning system onboard an
aircraft along with a kinematic Global Positioning System (GPS)
receiver to locate an x and y position and an inertial navigation
system to monitor the pitch and roll of the aircraft. By accurately
measuring the round trip travel time of the laser pulse from the
aircraft to the ground, a highly accurate spot elevation can be
calculated. Depending upon the altitude and speed of the aircraft
along with the laser repetition rate it is possible to obtain point
densities that would likely take months to collect using traditional
ground survey methods.